Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, on Wednesday warned that any individual chosen to succeed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would be a target for assassination.

Khamenei was reportedly killed in US-Israeli airstrikes on Tehran earlier this week, triggering a period of uncertainty over Iran’s leadership.

Speaking on X, Katz said, “any leader selected by the Iranian terror regime to continue leading the plan for Israel’s destruction, threatening the United States, the free world and countries in the region, and suppressing the Iranian people, will be a certain target for assassination, no matter his name or where he hides.”

The statement signals Israel’s continued hardline posture toward Iran and underscores escalating tensions in the Middle East following the air campaign. Analysts say such threats could heighten instability in the region as discussions about succession within Iran’s leadership intensify.

This announcement follows days of retaliatory missile and drone attacks by Iran on US bases, Israel, and Gulf allies, in response to the strikes that killed Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials. The conflict has already led to casualties on both sides and has raised concerns of a wider regional escalation.